In 2016, the World Health Organization reported 25% of all adults experience physical abuse as children. Moreover, they indicated 20% of all women and around 10% of all men have been sexually abused early in life. Childhood trauma may have significant negative effects on individuals, as they progress through adulthood. However, not all individuals will suffer from negative effects associated with trauma. Many factors come into play when trying to understand why some children overcome the negative experiences of childhood trauma and have positive outcomes later in life while others continue to be negatively affected throughout adulthood.
Early Life Trauma and Resiliency
Past research has found that coping …show more content…
One of the processes involved in this theory is secondary appraisal, which is the way an individual views the situation, and determines if they can gain and grow from their negative experience (Peacock & Wong, 1990). Peacock & Wong (1990) found that cognitive appraisal such as self-esteem, self-reliance and the ability to regulate emotions is a significant predictor of coping reactions, especially when faced with individual threats that may produce stress in response. Stress can be described as a threat to an individual’s homeostasis, which increases reactivity of the automatic nervous system through hormone secretion (Cicchetti & Rogosch, 2009). Beutel and colleagues (2017) found that lower somatic symptoms indicate lower symptoms of distress and higher resilient coping, with an optimistic attitude influencing the results. Positive emotions, finding positive meanings in the negative situations, increase psychological resiliency and helps individuals recover from stressful experiences, in turn, increase one’s ability to cope effectively (Tugade & Fredrickson, …show more content…
Cognitive appraisal and personality have been found to influence coping responses to stressful situations (Li, 2009). The way an individual perceives the situation and the belief that they can overcome the negative experience may play a significant role in positive outcomes after the stress of early life trauma. Tugade and Fredrickson (2004) found positive reappraisal to be a positive coping strategy which enhanced outcomes in well-being and positive emotions. Further, reported that positive emotions appear to have a unique ability, to reduce the lingering effects of negative emotions. Also, that positive emotions have distinct adaptive functions, which may alter cognitive and physiological effects producing healthy